John McCain’s campaign has posted a “strategy briefing” from campaign manager Rick Davis. These sorts of briefings or memos are made for external consumption, of course. But there are some interesting details in the PowerPoint.

Davis says that campaign polling shows that nationwide, the economy is the top issue voters are concerned about, with the Iraq war No. 2, and energy and gas costs in third place. But in the northwest, the war is the top issue. That’s true in only a few regions in the country, according to the McCain campaign. Here, the economy is second and gas prices are third.

Washington and Oregon are shown as “toss-up” states, though we’re not mentioned when Davis talks about swing states where the campaign thinks it has a good chance of winning.

I have learned from a trusted inside source that the Obama campaign has approached, and held talks with, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) as a possible Vice-Presidential selection.

It’s not true, though. Murray spokeswoman Alex Glass said that while she “loves the rumor,”

Senator Murray is focused on doing her job for the people of Washington state.

Rep. Adam Smith, D-Tacoma, has a fan, too.

A writer at BlueNC, a lefty blog in North Carolina, includes Smith in a “Dark Horse” category in a VP handicap post, along with Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel and independent New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

These are my long-shot picks. One Republican, one Independent who used to be a Democrat before he used to be a Republican, and one guy you’ve probably never heard of (yeah he’s not that Adam Smith). Hagel would certainly feed well into a message of new politics and have crossover appeal; he’s also had a lot of nice things to say about Obama recently. Bloomberg also has a lot of independent appeal (and billions of his own money to spread that appeal) but is still questionable. However I think the one that emerges here is Adam Smith. An early Obama backer and effective surrogate he’s shown he can handle himself well with the media. An effective campaigner he was able to turn a Republican district into a safe Democratic seat. As a long serving member of the House he has served on the Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committee and is chair of the Subcommittee on Unconventional Threats (which might be handy if your administration was facing an unconventional threat like say terrorism). This is a solid background on Foreign Policy that compliments Obama’s rather than overshadowing it. And what says “new politics” quite like picking someone that’s completely off the radar of the mainstream media?
Bracket Winner: Rep. Adam Smith

Is there anyone in Washington state who you think would make a good vice presidential candidate for Obama or John McCain? Let’s start some rumors.

UPDATE: Gov. Chris Gregoire has an advocate for the job, too, though she is The Jed Report's second choice.

On a political level, Obama wouldn't pick Gregoire to deliver Washington state -- Washington will go blue in November no matter who he picks. Rather, the obvious political objective would be demographic, to cement Obama's strength with voters who want to see a woman on the ticket. (As a bonus, she's Catholic, and she's 61, which might put her on the old side for 2016, but is a perfect compliment to Obama in 2008.)